This invention pertains to the art of wheelchairs and more particularly to a collapsible, attended wheelchair.
The invention is applicable to a so-called low profile wheelchair adapted to meet a number of dimensional constraints associated, for example, with airline travel and will be described with particular reference thereto. It will be appreciated, however, that the invention has broader applications and may be advantageously employed in other environments and applications that impose similar dimensional constraints on the overall size of the wheelchair.
Wheelchairs are in widespread use in a variety of environments and particularly advantageous in assisting elderly or infirm people. One particular instance, though, in which difficulties are encountered is where dimensional constraints are applicable. By way of example, a wheelchair is often used to assist passengers embarking and disembarking from an airplane. The wheelchair is usually maintained in accessible storage at the flight gate. Alternatively, a limited number of wheelchairs are maintained on hand in a terminal servicing a number of flight gates. If a passenger requires the use of a wheelchair, an attendant assists the passenger from the flight gate to the airplane door, or vice versa.
If the passenger is embarking, the passenger is wheeled to the airplane door. Although the wheelchair may fit through the entryway of the airplane, unfortunately the aisle width does not permit the wheelchair to be moved down the aisle. The attendant and/or stewardess thus assists the passenger from the wheelchair, down the aisle and to his/her seat without benefit of the wheelchair. The wheelchair is thereafter removed from the door of the airplane and placed in storage at the airport until further use is required.
In other words, the dimensions of the airplane prohibit storage of the wheelchair on the airplane and encourages storage at the airport. The width of the aisle between the seats particularly inhibits use of the wheelchair beyond the doorway in the airplane.
Still further, even if the aisle width is not a limiting constraint, storage of the wheelchair on board during flight poses a problem. Although there has been a continued effort by manufacturers to maximize the storage area provided on the airplane, there are still storage limits placed on the size and amount of luggage which each passenger is permitted to take on board. These same storage space constraints apply to a wheelchair, particularly one which may not be used with each and every flight.
Therefore, it has been deemed desirable to find a wheelchair that collapses to a low profile, i.e., minimizes its dimensional relationships in a stored position. Further, the overall width of the wheelchair in an assembled condition must be minimized to fit through narrow aisles. Still further, the wheelchair should be easily collapsible so that once a passenger has been assisted to or from his seat, it can be conveniently and easily collapsed for storage on board the airplane.